Hunter v. McBride et al

Filing 8

ORDER DISMISSING Complaint, WITH LEAVE TO AMEND, for Failure to State a Cognizable Claim 1 , signed by Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone on 11/18/14: 30-Day Deadline. (Attachments: # 1 Amended Complaint - blank form)(Hellings, J)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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JESSE HUNTER,

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Plaintiff,

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v.

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McBRIDE, et al.,

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Defendants.

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Case No.: 1:14-cv-01192-SAB (PC)
ORDER DISMISSING COMPLAINT, WITH
LEAVE TO AMEND, FOR FAILURE TO STATE
A COGNIZABLE CLAIM
[ECF No. 1]

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Plaintiff Jesse Hunter is appearing pro se and in forma pauperis in this civil rights action

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pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c), Plaintiff consented to the jurisdiction of

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the United States Magistrate Judge on November 5, 2014. Local Rule 302.

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I.

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SCREENING REQUIREMENT

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The Court is required to screen complaints brought by prisoners seeking relief against a

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governmental entity or officer or employee of a governmental entity. 28 U.S.C. § 1915A(a). The

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Court must dismiss a complaint or portion thereof if the prisoner has raised claims that are legally

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“frivolous or malicious,” that “fails to state a claim on which relief may be granted,” or that “seeks

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monetary relief against a defendant who is immune from such relief.” 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(2)(B).

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A complaint must contain “a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is
entitled to relief. . . .” Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a)(2). Detailed factual allegations are not required, but
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“[t]hreadbare recitals of the elements of a cause of action, supported by mere conclusory statements,

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do not suffice.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678 (2009) (citing Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly,

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550 U.S. 544, 555 (2007)). Plaintiff must demonstrate that each named defendant personally

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participated in the deprivation of his rights. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 676-677; Simmons v. Navajo County,

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Ariz., 609 F.3d 1011, 1020-1021 (9th Cir. 2010).

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Prisoners proceeding pro se in civil rights actions are still entitled to have their pleadings

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liberally construed and to have any doubt resolved in their favor, but the pleading standard is now

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higher, Wilhelm v. Rotman, 680 F.3d 1113, 1121 (9th Cir. 2012) (citations omitted), and to survive

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screening, Plaintiff’s claims must be facially plausible, which requires sufficient factual detail to allow

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the Court to reasonably infer that each named defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged. Iqbal,

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556 U.S. at 678-79; Moss v. U.S. Secret Serv., 572 F.3d 962, 969 (9th Cir. 2009). The “sheer

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possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully” is not sufficient, and “facts that are ‘merely

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consistent with’ a defendant’s liability” falls short of satisfying the plausibility standard. Iqbal, 556

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U.S. at 678; Moss, 572 F.3d at 969.

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II.

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COMPLAINT ALLEGATIONS

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Plaintiff names James A. Yates, McBride, Walker, Oxborrow, and Deathridge. The events at
issue in this action took place at Pleasant Valley State Prison (PVSP).

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On or about May 7, 2011, at approximately 12:50 p.m., while Plaintiff was in the gymnasium,

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prison officials staged a riot, in which officers conducted forceful actions by several Mexican inmates

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to attack African American inmates for the purpose of “training exercise” which allowed the officers

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to use tear gas, pepper spray, and shotguns. The Mexican inmates outnumbered the African American

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inmates at a ratio of eight-to-one.

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On or about February 19, 2010, and November 2, 2011, while Plaintiff was housed in the

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gymnasium, he was “besieged” by Hispanic inmates who were instructed to engage in mutual combat

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against Plaintiff and several other African American inmates, also residing in the gymnasium, for the

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express purpose of “Practice Procedures for Officers to Quell Riots,” and proceeded to allow Hispanic

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inmates to engage in a riot against African American inmates at a ratio of eight-to-one. Plaintiff

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suffered serious to minor injuries from the beatings by Hispanic inmates.

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While Plaintiff was housed in the gymnasium, he was a participant in the Mental Health

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Services Delivery System. As a result of the officer initiated riots, Plaintiff has suffered Post

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Traumatic Stress Disorder, precipitated by the numerous riots staged against him and other African

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American inmates. Plaintiff is currently under treatment by prison mental health staff for this serious

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mental condition, resulting from the numerous riots in which he was forced to engage within.

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The named Defendants, knew or should have known, that Plaintiff was suffering from a mental

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health crisis episode when they viewed him in his cell the following morning of November 3, 2011.

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Plaintiff, as a result of ineffective treatment, suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. To this date,

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Plaintiff is being treated by the Mental Health Clinic for the Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome as a

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result of the staged beatings.

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III.

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DISCUSSION

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A.

Linkage Under Section 1983

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Under section 1983, Plaintiff must link the named defendants to the participation in the

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violation at issue. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 676-77 (2009); Simmons v. Navajo County, Ariz.,

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609 F.3d 1011, 1020-21 (9th Cir. 2010); Ewing v. City of Stockton, 588 F.3d 1218, 1235 (9th Cir.

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2009); Jones v. Williams, 297 F.3d 930, 934 (9th Cir. 2002). Liability may not be imposed under a

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theory of respondeat superior, and there must exist some causal connection between the conduct of

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each named defendant and the violation at issue. Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 676-77; Lemire v. California

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Dep’t of Corr. and Rehab., 726 F.3d 1062, 1074-75 (9th Cir. 2013); Lacey v. Maricopa County, 693

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F.3d 896, 915-16 (9th Cir. 2012) (en banc); Starr v. Baca, 652 F.3d 1202, 1205-08 (9th Cir. 2011).

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Although Plaintiff names certain individuals as Defendants, he fails to state how each

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Defendant violated his constitutional rights. Merely alleging that “Defendants” violated his rights is

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insufficient. Ivey v. Bd. of Regents of the Univ. of Alaska, 673 F.2d 266, 268 (9th Cir. 1982) (vague

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and conclusory allegations of official participation in civil rights violations are not sufficient); Jones v.

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Cmty. Redev. Agency, 733 F.2d 646, 649 (9th Cir. 1984) (finding conclusory allegations unsupported
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by facts insufficient to state a claim under § 1983). “The plaintiff must allege with at least some

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degree of particularity overt acts which defendants engaged in that support the plaintiff’s claim.”

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Jones, 733 F.2d at 649 (internal quotation omitted).

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B.

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

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The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment protects prisoners

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not only from inhumane methods of punishment but also from inhumane conditions of confinement.

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Morgan v. Morgensen, 465 F.3d 1041, 1045 (9th Cir. 2006) (citing Farmer v. Brennan, 511 U.S. 825,

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847 (1994) and Rhodes v. Chapman, 452 U.S. 337, 347 (1981)) (quotation marks omitted).
While conditions of confinement may be, and often are, restrictive and harsh, they must not

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involve the wanton and unnecessary infliction of pain. Morgan, 465 F.3d at 1045 (citing Rhodes, 452

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U.S. at 347) (quotation marks omitted). Thus, conditions which are devoid of legitimate penological

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purpose or contrary to evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society

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violate the Eighth Amendment. Morgan, 465 F.3d at 1045 (quotation marks and citations omitted);

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Hope v. Pelzer, 536 U.S. 730, 737 (2002); Rhodes, 452 U.S. at 346. Among unnecessary and wanton

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inflictions of pain are those that are totally without penological justification. Hope, 536 U.S. at 737

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(citing Rhodes v. Chapman, 452 U.S. at 346) (quotation marks omitted). Punitive treatment which

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amounts to gratuitous infliction of wanton and unnecessary pain is prohibited by the Eighth

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Amendment. Id. at 738 (quotation marks omitted).
To maintain an Eighth Amendment claim, a prisoner must show that prison officials were

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deliberately indifferent to a substantial risk of harm to his health or safety. Farmer, 511 U.S. at 847;

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Thomas v. Ponder, 611 F.3d 1144, 1150-51 (9th Cir. 2010); Foster v. Runnels, 554 F.3d 807, 812-14

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(9th Cir. 2009); Morgan, 465 F.3d at 1045; Johnson, 217 F.3d at 731; Frost v. Agnos, 152 F.3d 1124,

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1128 (9th Cir. 1998).
Although Plaintiff contends that “Defendants” staged riots between Mexican and African

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American inmates in order to facilitate training procedures and experience by prison staff, Plaintiff

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fails to link any of the named Defendants to specific actions giving rise to the alleged violations.

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Accordingly, Plaintiff fails to state a cognizable constitutional violation.

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C.

Supervisory Liability

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Supervisory personnel may not be held liable under section 1983 for the actions of subordinate

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employees based on respondeat superior, or vicarious liability. Crowley v. Bannister, 734 F.3d 967,

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977 (9th Cir. 2013); accord Lemire v. California Dep’t of Corr. and Rehab., 726 F.3d 1062, 1074-75

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(9th Cir. 2013); Lacey v. Maricopa County, 693 F.3d 896, 915-16 (9th Cir. 2012) (en banc). “A

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supervisor may be liable only if (1) he or she is personally involved in the constitutional deprivation,

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or (2) there is a sufficient causal connection between the supervisor’s wrongful conduct and the

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constitutional violation.” Crowley, 734 F.3d at 977 (citing Snow, 681 F.3d at 989) (internal quotation

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marks omitted); accord Lemire, 726 F.3d at 1074-75; Lacey, 693 F.3d at 915-16. “Under the latter

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theory, supervisory liability exists even without overt personal participation in the offensive act if

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supervisory officials implement a policy so deficient that the policy itself is a repudiation of

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constitutional rights and is the moving force of a constitutional violation.” Crowley, 734 F.3d at 977

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(citing Hansen v. Black, 885 F.2d 642, 646 (9th Cir. 1989)) (internal quotation marks omitted).

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To the extent Plaintiff contends that certain supervisory officials, such as Warden Yates,

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violated his constitutional rights, such liability cannot be premised on respondeat superior liability.

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Thus, the mere fact that certain Defendants may have supervised other named Defendants alleged to

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be responsible for a violation is not sufficient. Supervisory personnel may only be held liable in a

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supervisory capacity if they each “participated in or directed the violations, or knew of the violations

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and failed to act to prevent them.” Taylor v. List, 880 F.2d 1040, 1045 (9th Cir. 1989).

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D.

Discovery Requests

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Plaintiff attaches discovery requests to his complaint. As advised in the Court’s First

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Information Order, filed July 31, 2014, the discovery phase of this litigation is not yet open. (ECF No.

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3, Order at section V.) In addition, once discovery is open, court permission is not necessary for

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discovery requests. Discovery is self-executing until such time as a party becomes dissatisfied with a

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response and seeks relief from the court pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

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Interrogatories, requests for admissions, requests for production of documents, and responses thereto

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shall not be filed with the court until there is a proceeding in which the document or proof of service is

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at issue. Such documents are to be served on the opposing party, and not with the court. Local Rule

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33-250, 36-250. Discovery requests improperly filed with the court will be stricken from the record.

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IV.

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CONCLUSION AND ORDER

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For the reasons stated, Plaintiff’s complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief may be

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granted. Plaintiff is granted leave to file an amended complaint within thirty (30) days. Noll v.

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Carlson, 809 F.2d 1446, 1448-49 (9th Cir. 1987). Plaintiff may not change the nature of this suit by

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adding new, unrelated claims in his amended complaint. George v. Smith, 507 F.3d 605, 607 (7th Cir.

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2007) (no “buckshot” complaints).

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Plaintiff’s amended complaint should be brief, Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a), but must state what each

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named defendant did that led to the deprivation of Plaintiff’s constitutional or other federal rights.

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Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678. “The inquiry into causation must be individualized and focus on the duties

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and responsibilities of each individual defendant whose acts or omissions are alleged to have caused a

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constitutional deprivation.” Leer v. Murphy, 844 F.2d 628, 633 (9th Cir. 1988). Although accepted as

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true, the “[f]actual allegations must be [sufficient] to raise a right to relief above the speculative level .

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. . .” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555 (citations omitted).

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Finally, an amended complaint supersedes the original complaint, Forsyth v. Humana, Inc.,

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114 F.3d 1467, 1474 (9th Cir. 1997); King v. Atiyeh, 814 F.2d 565, 567 (9th Cir. 1987), and must be

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“complete in itself without reference to the prior or superseded pleading,” Local Rule 220. “All

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causes of action alleged in an original complaint which are not alleged in an amended complaint are

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waived.” King, 814 F.2d at 567 (citing to London v. Coopers & Lybrand, 644 F.2d 811, 814 (9th Cir.

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1981)); accord Forsyth, 114 F.3d at 1474.

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Based on the foregoing, it is HEREBY ORDERED that:

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1.

The Clerk’s Office shall send Plaintiff a civil rights complaint form;

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Plaintiff’s complaint, filed July 30, 2014, is dismissed for failure to state a claim;

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3.

Within thirty (30) days from the date of service of this order, Plaintiff shall file an
amended complaint; and

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4.

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If Plaintiff fails to file an amended complaint in compliance with this order, this action
will be dismissed, with prejudice, for failure to state a claim.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated:

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November 18, 2014
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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